Loading results Sleep Apnea. Topics Sleep Apnea Sleep Apnea. A common sleep disorder, called sleep apnea, can up the risk of high blood pressure, heart attack and atrial fibrillation. Common signs of sleep apnea include pauses in breathing while sleeping, excessive snoring and daytime sleepiness.
If you find it difficult to stay awake, concentrate or perform simple tasks, talk to your health care provider. What is sleep apnea? Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder. These pauses in breathing usually last for 10 to 20 seconds, but can last longer and can happen as many as 30 times per hour. Heart rate and blood pressure drop during sleep as breathing becomes stable and regular. Not getting enough sleep as a result of conditions like OSA means not giving the heart and cardiovascular system this important recovery time.
Chronic sleep deprivation has been linked to increased risk for hypertension, heart disease, heart attacks, and stroke. The repetitive pauses in breathing that characterize sleep apnea can stress and potentially damage not only the heart, but the whole cardiovascular system. While researchers are continuing to learn about the ways in which sleep apnea affects the cardiovascular system and contributes to heart disease, several biological pathways have been suggested.
Each time a person with sleep apnea stops breathing, the level of oxygen in the blood decreases. As the body becomes deprived of oxygen, specialized cells — called chemoreceptors — detect these changes and activate the sympathetic nervous system to respond, which is the part of the nervous system responsible for reacting to stressful or dangerous situations.
The sympathetic nervous system triggers the body to gasp for air, which sometimes wakes a person out of sleep. The sympathetic nervous system also responds to a low level of oxygen by constricting blood vessels and increasing heart rate and blood pressure. As the pauses in breath continue throughout the night, repetitive changes in blood pressure may lead to hypertension or make existing hypertension worse.
When a person with obstructive sleep apnea OSA attempts to breathe, they inhale against a narrowed or closed upper airway. These unsuccessful, forced inhalations can cause substantial changes in pressure within the chest cavity. Over time, these repetitive changes in intrathoracic pressure can damage the heart. Intrathoracic pressure changes can lead to atrial fibrillation an irregular, often rapid heartbeat , problems with blood flow to the heart, and even heart failure.
After each pause in breath, a person with sleep apnea once again inhales successfully. This inhale brings much-needed oxygen back into the lungs, blood, and body tissues.
Unfortunately, frequent changes in oxygen levels can cause significant stress on the body, called oxidative stress. Oxidative stress can promote systemic inflammation, as well as neurochemical and physiological reactions that increase the risk of heart disease. Common signs and symptoms of sleep apnea include:. Diagnostic tests for sleep apnea often include a comprehensive sleep evaluation and polysomnography to diagnose or rule out this serious condition.
Talking to a doctor about sleep apnea is an important step that anyone can take to protect their heart health. If a person is diagnosed with sleep apnea, treatments are often effective. Treatment for sleep apnea depends on the type of sleep apnea detected and may include:. Rob writes about the intersection of sleep and mental health and previously worked at the National Cancer Institute. Truong is a Stanford-trained sleep physician with board certifications in sleep and internal medicine.
She is the founder of Earlybird Health. Learn why this may be better for…. Sleep apnea headaches are a type of morning headache common in people with obstructive sleep apnea. Learn more about what…. An actigraphy device tracks your movements so your doctor can analyze your sleep patterns. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly.
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Lancet , , Marissa Fessenden Marissa is a freelance science journalist with a background in general biology and neuroscience. Larry Barefield Reply Posted on May 18, Laiza Reply Posted on July 13, Thanks for sharing this article.
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